Category: Vancouver Island

Coombs BC is a funky corner of the earth with the Country Market Goats-on-the-Roof and random stores along the highway. It’s not where you’d expect a fine dining Italian restaurant. But here you are in the middle of the market area, across from a big ice cream parlour, and snug next to a Mexican casual outdoor patio. Little Italy. The restaurant is good during a pandemic because they have a lot of patio seating and always have. It’s a little piece of heaven hidden from the world. There were five us in our bubble and we enjoyed a late lunch. […]

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When you are driving around on holiday, it’s sometime rewarding to decide to follow a sign. We have been on the road to Deep Bay Marine Field Stationin the hopes to be able to walk the grounds. This did not work as the gate was closed. They had decided to not be open to the public due to the pandemic. Other places like Milner Gardens had followed suit, sadly. On the way back to Parksville, we say a sign for Big Qualicum Fish Hatchery. The kids of course seem to get nervous whenever Dad says, “Hey let’s check this out.” […]

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After our search for Notch Hill didn’t work out, I wanted to treat the family to a nice ocean view. I had seen on one of the maps a tiny park right in Fairwinds Community called Brickyard Community Park, which was maintained by Regional District of Nanaimo. This sounded a little more promising that the Fairwinds’ private trails. We drove down to the water past the Fairwinds Golf Course. The area and architecture spoke to me saying, “rich white dudes wearing bad golf shorts.” Had the housing come with price tags, it would have said, “if you have to ask, […]

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In the Parksville–Qualicum Beach Discovery Guide that you can pick up around the area – but definitely at the tourist info office on Highway 19A on the way into Parksville — there’s a mention of Notch Hill. It is short and reads, “A short hike to the top of the Notch Hill will reward you with view of Mount Arrowsmith, Nanoose Harbour and south to Nanaimo. This area contains a rare Garry Oak meadow and Arbutus forest ecosystem. The lookout is a great spot for a picnic lunch in nature.” This appealed to use because, with the pandemic, many places […]

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When on vacation, sometimes you get a moment to read. When shopping in places, I love looking for small bookstores. Occasionally you find a good book. Coombs BC is about 9 km from Parksville. In Coombs there’s a bookstore called Cozy Corner Books that’s got a lot of stuff but over time it’s gotten more disorganized over time. The owner knows tons but I literally tripped over a pile of books and was trapped for a couple of minutes. It’s always fun to look around but ton find anything is tough. Meanwhile in Parksville, at Fireside Books, the place is […]

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Coombs BC is about 10 km west of Parksville. Every summer for 106 years, there has been the Coombs Fair, which is a flat out good old-fashioned agricultural fair. We for once were in the area when it was being held and decided to join in the fun. There is a dominance of 4-H clubs, which is a group of folks running youth programs in various disciplines. In Coombs’ case, it was animals, arts and small engines. It was interesting seeing young people wrangle rather large cattle with a calm that I wouldn’t have with an animal many times my […]

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Englishman River Falls Provincial Park is located in Errington BC, which is about 6 km from Parksville. It’s my kind of hike (more of a walk, really) because it’s short (3 km) is easy and the scenery is spectacular. There are two falls (upper and lower) that have wonderful views. The lower falls ends in a pool in which thick-blooded individuals were splashing about. The water comes from a mountain and I expect it would be a tad chilly. The park is fairly busy, given there’s a campground attached and is easy access to day trippers as well. But you […]

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Milner Gardens in Qualicum Beach was a visit a long time coming. We visit the Oceanside area of Vancouver Island once or twice a year and, every time we tried to sneak in a visit to Milner Gardens, we’ve been thwarted by scheduling issues. Vancouver Island University came into possession of the 79 acres of seaside walk and botanical gardens in 1996. Make sure to read the History page of the website because the original patrons are super British connected and the gardens have hosted Queen Elizabeth and some of her offspring over the years. For us, we had a […]

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You know those classy Italian restaurants that have great food and it’s tough to secure a reservation? I do, but honestly what is one doing in Coombs, BC? This tiny town is 10 minutes west of Parksville along highway 4A, also known as the Alberni Highway. This is not the big city! The Cuckoo Trattoria and Pizzeria is a large space with a lot of outdoor seating that looks over the woods that are behind the Goats on the Roof shopping destination. We were connecting with family and friends and others negotiated the reservation and we sat at the Mexican […]

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What small resort town that has two mini golf places would be complete without a bowling alley? Sunset Lanes in Parksville is at the south end of town and is a small bowling alley that is fun, as a bowling alley should be. We enjoyed 2 frames of 5-pin bowling. If you are with younger kids, they can put up the deflector rails so that newbies don’t get too discouraged by gutter balls. We went on cosmic bowling night, which means you bowl under the glow of black light and look very funny if you’re wearing a lot of white. […]

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